Herding Horses and Frisbees

Stop Horsing Around

I have a six month-old Border Collie who already likes to chase my horses. I want her to be able to work them properly, but I want to train her myself. Do you all have any suggestions on books or videos I can buy to help me?

I also like to throw the Frisbee for her. She will chase it until she has a heart attack, but she is afraid to catch it in the air. She will duck and let it pass over her head or just wait for it to hit the ground. What should I do?

First of all I would never allow a Border Collie to herd horses or even be allowed around them in unsupervised situations. I don't know a single herding trainer in this country that would train a Border Collie to herd horses. All it takes is one swift kick and you have a dead dog. Border Collies are extraordinary herding dogs, and they can handle pretty much anything including cows, goats, sheep, and about anything else that moves but a thousand-pound animal that is very good at using its legs in defending itself is out of the question. I have known far too many Border Collies that have been killed from a swift kick of a horse.

If you are interested in training for herding, I think the best book out there is by a Virgil Holland called "Herding Dogs, Progressive Training". But you'll notice in his book he mentions that Border Collies can work all kinds of animals but horses are not included in the list.

Frisbee Dog

In terms of Frisbee playing it sounds like you are doing it wrong. You should never throw the Frisbee at the dog but rather it should be thrown away from them. The idea is for them to run out on the Frisbee from behind and catch it as it is going away. If they miss it when you are throwing it at them, it may hit them in the face and that is not a pleasurable experience and they learn that Frisbee is not such a fun game. However, if you are throwing it away from them and they miss it, it simply falls to the ground. There are lots of great tips on the Web for Frisbee training. There is also a book out by Peter Bloeme called "Frisbee Dogs: How To Raise, Train, and Compete". One other possibility is to join the FrisbeeDog list. There's lots of great tips there.